Review by Sonny for Blazon Rite - Wild Rites and Ancient Songs (2023)

Dust off those hand-painted lead figures, dig out the D20s and fill your personalised, engraved pewter tankard with foaming ale, because Blazon Rites are here with their Battleaxe of +4 Damage to deal righteous retribution to the evildoers and ne'er-do-wells that plague the lives of mere simple folk. Yes, Blazon Rites leave no uncertainty as to their love of fantasy with both their cover art and their, frankly, exceedingly cheesy lyrics. But, you know what, as a one-time table-top role player myself, back in my youth, I thoroughly enjoyed this romp through the wilds and taverns of fantasy stereotype.

Musically and, to a degree, aesthetically, they remind me somewhat of Solstice, or, to be more accurate, Rich Walker's short-lived side project, Isen Torr, whose Mighty & Superior EP may have been a touchstone for BR. Vocalist Johnny Halladay very much reminds me of Sami Hynninen, to the point where I had to check that they weren't yet another project of the Reverend Bizarre frontman himself (they aren't, they are from Philadelphia). Anyone thus familiar with old Witchfinder will also realise that, in a Maiden-esque, heavy metal set-up this means there are limitations in the vocal department. For me this isn't a problem, but anyone looking for power metal hystrionics (which you may well be justified in doing considering the album's optics) you are going to be severely disappointed. In truth, Blazon Rite aren't particularly sophisticated song writers, with the opener "Autumn Fear Brings Winter Doom" probably being the pick songwriting-wise and this is an area where they leave scope for improvement. That said, they do kick out decent, fist pumping heavy metal riffs and lead guitarist Pierson Roe delivers Adrian Smith-like leads with aplomb. What they do exude by the barrel-full, though, is enthusiasm and a seemingly genuine love of heavy metal and its fantasy trappings and that is not to be underestimated in a world where musical experimentalism and po-faced seriousness threaten to crush all sense of fun out of the genre. I think us internet metal nerds sometimes forget that metal can just be entertaining and fun without us feeling guilty about not pushing ourselves with every release we listen to, or not contemplating the depths of our psyche with every lyrical musing. So crack open a beer, kick back and feel a smile crawl across your face thanks to the simple metal fare that Blazon Rite have served up here.